Verse III: Birth of Yin
©️HiImFebby

Blissful days passed by and the news about Huang Liu's pregnancy quickly spread throughout the Heaven and Immortal Realm.

"I can feel her," Huang Liu said to Xiang Hu while caressing her belly with her husband on her side. "I can feel her movements in my womb."

The flutters and the little tumbles made her happy. She is now carrying her own child.

"Your father and I," Huang Liu paused and looked into Xiang Hu's eyes with so much joy. "Will protect you no matter what," she said as they both look at the glittering stars above them.

Bearing the child of the Immortal's Fox clan, the baby is developing very fast inside her.

Earlier, they visited Xiang Hu's parents to personally tell them the good news, and Yu Yang, Xiang Hu's mother warned the Goddess.

"We only bear the child inside our womb for 60 days, unlike other immortals who carry their children for more than 270 days." Yu Yang said as she touch her daughter-in-law's belly.






"As a mix of the God's blood from you and the immortal blood from Xiao Xiang, we are not certain how long will you bear the child in your womb," the Fox Queen said as she waved her hand to cast a spell on Huang Liu. "This spell will help your body manage the pain of your pregnancy."

Huang Liu hugged her mother-in-law and the couple decided to stay for a few days in the Immortal Fox's Den.

                                     ༊ *

In the span of almost a week, Huang Liu's body drastically changed and the pain of carrying the child was beyond her imagination.

Every day, her body became thinner and thinner to the point that she can no longer stand on her own. Her healthy body may now be compared to a thin bamboo swaying along with the wind and her purple veins can be seen through her skin. Even her insides are like being torn apart and the fetus' movements make her feel like glass being shattered.

The spell that her mother-in-law cast on the first days of her pregnancy was no use. The Divine Doctor's prescriptions can't even help to ease the pain Huang Liu felt during her pregnancy days.

"I can't bear to watch her suffer anymore." Xiang Hu spoke while kowtowing in front of the Heavenly God, Huang Di.

"I, too, brother-in-law. However, the decision has already been made by my dear sister. You know her temperament and I know her heart the most." Huang Di said, recalling their conversation with Huang Liu, Xiang Hu, and the elders of the Immortal Fox Clan. "She will not let go of her child, even if it costs her life."

Xiang Hu rose up from his cushion, his legs wobbly and Xing Ming caught him on time.

"Your Highness." Xing Ming bowed to Huang Di.

"Her pregnancy is now a huge threat to her safety. Your Highness," Xiang Hu bowed to the cold ground once again and his knees echoed a thud in the main hall. "Please help me convince her to let go of our child."

"I already did," Huang Di said. He held Xiang Hu's arms and urged him to get up. "I paid her a visit in Zhao Lu's palace. Her condition is bad enough to make her give up on this pregnancy," The Heavenly God paused to let out a long sigh. "But she begged me that despite her condition, she will try her best to live on and successfully deliver the baby." 

Huang Di glanced at the orange and purple skies of Heaven outside the main hall, "I believe that my sister will make it. I believe that you should too," he tapped Xiang Hu's shoulders. "You're her other half, after all." And he left the main hall of Heaven with Xing Ming.

                                     ༊ *

"Hang in there, Your Highness," said the Royal Midwife to Huang Liu. The Goddess has been in labor for more than a day now and the midwife can already see that her body is collapsing.

"Ahh!" shouted Huang Liu in pain. The contractions are getting worse over time.

Countless maids have been going in and out of Zhao Lu's palace carrying basins full of blood including Feng Shangshen to give updates to the two Gods waiting outside Huang Liu's chambers.

"Wǒ qīzi hái hǎo ma?" asked Xiang Hu who's been going around circles for some time.

"Her Highness' situation is not favorable. Her body is too weak to endure this labor," answered Madame Wind and Xiang Hu lost his balance upon hearing about her news.

"We should prepare ourselves for the worst case," Madame Wind added and sad tears sprung from her eyes. "My poor Huang Liu," she cried. "My poor dear Huang Liu."

They continued to hear Huang Liu's screams of pain from the other room and Xiang Hu's mind went blank. Now the Goddess is still in the process of delivering her child, the others can only wait outside and wait for any news from the Royal Midwife.

Thunder echoed from the right and shook the hall. The phoenixes that are resting in their nests flew with panic and the clear skies were covered with pitch-black clouds.

Xing Ming who was on his way to Zhao Lu Palace searching for Huang Di halted on Cloud Bridge to look at the dark sky, "An omen?" he uttered in low voice.

The Star Deity stopped walking for a while once again. His exposed forehead formed a frown, tilted his head while he think of the possible cause of these signs, "Bù kěnéng."

One last time, he glanced at the phoenixes and rushed to Zhao Lu's palace.

While in the distance, a child's cry was heard in the room instead of her mother's. 

"Shàngshén, xīnkǔle," said the Royal Midwife as she carefully wrapped the healthy baby girl in her arms.

Bingbing and the other Palace maids bowed at the sight of the new Goddess. The Royal Midwife notified Huang Di that the delivery is a success and they may now see Huang Liu.

Tears sprung from Xiang Hu's eyes upon seeing his wife and his first daughter. He cried, even more, when he saw how bad his wife's state was. Xiang Hu rushed to hug both of them.

"Look at her," Huang Liu weakly said while lulling her baby. "She is so beautiful."

"Beautiful like her mother," the God smiled and kiss Huang Liu on the forehead.

The Heavenly God sent a Denglong, a dragon with a tiger-like appearance to relay the news of the birth of Xiang Hu's daughter to the Immortal Realm.

Xing Ming arrived at Zhao Lu's palace and saw Huang Liu carrying the baby. "Congratulations, Your Highness for successfully giving birth to another member of Heaven's royal family." and then kowtowed at the Goddess.

The little deity cried for the second time after being born. It echoed throughout the halls of Zhao Lu's palace and the Jade Palace of the Heaven Emperor was suddenly engulfed by thunderclouds, however, it quickly faded when the baby stopped crying.

"What is happening on here?" Huang Di murmured and glanced at his niece.

                                     ༊ *

"My Lord, the Heavenly God summons you," Chen Guochao, the Stars Apprentice notified his master.

"Let His Highness know that I'll be joining him in a bit," Xing Ming dismissed him and Guochao instantly disappeared. 

The deity lurked around the Celestial Library, and he decided to head into the ancient records to look for some scrolls.

"Hmm," he returned the scroll in his hand to its shelf and walked towards the Forbidden Section.

"Ah, my treasures," he whispered upon entering the Forbidden Section with ease. The lingering scent of the ancient books and scrolls including the thousand years old artifacts dominated the vast library.

He ran his fingers toward the records of the previous Immortal Realm rulers, to ancient Heaven scriptures, but then he paused.

A frown formed on the deity's forehead when his hand landed on a familiar place, "Where is it?" he said and he felt a sudden panic.

"Where is it?" his anxiety grew stronger as he scan through the shelves in the enormous room.

"It is indeed missing," Xing Ming whispered to himself. "Where did it go?" he clenched his fists to suppress his anger, and soon headed to the main hall to attend the Royal Banquet for the newborn princess of Heaven.

"I'll deal with you later," and glanced one last time at the entrance of the Celestial Library.

                                     ༊ *

"Congratulations my Lord, your Highness." the Goddess of the Flowers curtsied in front of Huang Liu and Xiang Nu, and gifted the little princess with thirty chests containing delicate fabrics made of the finest petals of the Flower Kingdom.

"Thank you," Huang Liu smiled and peeked at the sleeping princess in her arms.

The gods and immortals from all over the three realms spared time to visit the banquet for the little princess. Both Zhao Lu and Yueming palace were flooded with gifts.

"Xiao Guan Yin," Huang Di called to his niece while being cradled by Huang Liu. He immediately smiled when the little princess smiled at him. "You look like just your mother," he gently said and patted the baby's hand.

After a few moments, the Immortal Fox Family came and the immortals in the hall bowed at them.

"Father, you came." Xiang Nu came forward to hug his father, along with his mother and a younger brother who just came back from his trial in the mortal world.

"Of course!" the old Fox King Xiang Chao exclaimed with joy. "I want to see my first granddaughter!"

The immortals rose from their bow and the lively banquet resumed. The main hall was filled with a lively atmosphere and glorious phoenixes outside flew all over the place with their glamorous fiery wings.

"Xing Ming, you're late." Huang Di let out a soft laugh.

Xing Ming, the Deity of the Stars appeared in the banquet and the Heavenly God urged him to come forward. "Come, Xing Ming, come. I want you to perform a divination for my lovely niece."

Xing Ming stepped forward on the platform and held little Guan Yin's hand.

He gently closed his eyes.

And there, he only saw pitch-black worlds.

The Heaven Realm he saw was nothing but dark clouds with the destroyed Palace of Heaven. The Immortal Realm was nothing but vines of ancient trees and fragments of petrified immortals. The Mortal Realm was all deserted and every living being was wiped out.

Xing Ming immediately withdraws his hand from the grasp of the little goddess. He looked at the Heavenly God with utter shock, "Your Highness..."

Huang Di frowned when he saw Xing Ming's expression and the Star Lord glanced again at Guan Yin.

"What is it, tell me," said the Heavenly God.

"The realms will meet their end," Xing Ming told the Heavenly God, lowering his voice as much as he could but Xiang Nu and Huang Liu heard him too.

"What did you just say?" Huang Di eyed him with confusion.

The Star-Lord, with such shock showing on his face, look at each of them in the eye, "The realms, the heaven, immortal, and the mortal realm will meet their end, with the existence of the little goddess."

"Insolence!" Huang Di's spear appeared in his hand and he landed a thud that caused a disturbance in the main hall.

Xing Ming, immediately bowed along with the other deities and immortals to calm the Heavenly God. However, he offered Huang Di his vision. "As the Deity of the Stars, my divination is the most accurate among all realms. I, Xing Ming will prove it to you, your Grace."

He grabbed Huang Di's hand and place it in Guan Yin's little arms along with his.

There, the Heavenly God also saw what Xing Ming saw earlier.

The world without the existence of Yang energy; where there's only the coldness of the winter, the darkness caused by the sun that never again appeared, and silent cries of the beings that once inhabited the realms.

"This can't be." Huang Di let go of his niece's arms and lost his balance. Xing Ming immediately caught his back. "How is that possible?"

The Heavenly God stared at his sister with remorse and sorrow, "Who is that child and what have you done?"

Huang Liu confusingly looked at her older brother, "Brother, I don't quite understand." she covered the little goddess with the cloth, "Guan Yin is my daughter. My own child made from my own flesh and blood!"

With Huang Di's anger, he stopped the banquet and dismissed all the invited deities and immortals including the Royal Fox Family. He immediately called the Heavenly guards and surrounded Huang Liu and Xiang Nu.

"Ge!" Huang Liu shouted. "Nǐ zài gànshénme?" she cried, unknown of what is currently happening with his brother's behavior after Xing Ming finished his divination for Guan Yin.

"Lock them in their palaces and tell everyone that the banquet is over!" the Heavenly God commanded the guards and the couple was taken away along with the little child.

After the two gods were dragged out of the hall, Xing Ming took a step close to Huang Di. "Your Highness, that book is also missing."

The Heavenly God faced Xing Ming with a surprised look on his face, "Nándào..."

"I am afraid that your guess is right, Your Highness." then Huang Di stormed out of Heaven Palace's main hall and headed straight to the Celestial Library.

The attendants bowed at the Gods' presence however, Huang Di and Xing Ming did not glance back at them to receive the greeting.

"The Book of the Witches, where did you hide it?" asked Huang Di, and Xing Ming led the Heavenly God to the same spot he was in earlier before the banquet started, thus the same place where Huang Liu was.

"This is the place, your Highness. I bound it with a spell to make it look like an ordinary book and placed a barrier around it." Xing Ming swung his hands and fiery chains appeared on the shelf in front of them, however, it was already shattered into pieces.

"Hah," Huang Di scoffed. "That cunning evil already woke up from his deep slumber."

"You Highness," Xing Ming called and the Heavenly God glanced back. "Don't worry, I already found the book's whereabouts."

Huang Di's eyebrows raised with a bit of surprise on his face, "You did? Then where is it."

The Star Deity hesitantly look at Huang Di, but then he saw that the Heavenly God is already waiting for his response. He bit his lips before answering, "I found it in Huang Liu's chambers, hidden along with her realm passes, Your Highness."

Huang Liu was imprisoned inside her Palace and the same goes for Xiang Nu. 

"Huang Shénnǚ, what happened? Why there are many guards outside the palace?" asked Bingbing and Huang Liu placed Guan Yin inside her cradle.

"I am afraid they already knew," the Goddess sat down and drank her tea with anxiety drawn all over her face. She looks directly into Bingbing's eyes, "I think they discovered that we have the knowledge with regards to the Book of Witches."

Bingbing walked back and forth in front of Huang Liu while biting her fingernails and stopped after a short while. "By the way Goddess, I saw Xing Ming shangshen coming out from Zhao Lu's palace earlier before going to the banquet for the little royal highness," Bingbing whispered to Huang Liu and the goddess frowned when she heard this.

"What did he do? What's his purpose? Did you catch him?" said the Goddess.

"He came for the book, your Highness." answered the maid.

"As expected" Huang Liu paused for a moment to gather her thoughts.

"Quick, help me." Huang Liu got up with the help of Bingbing. They both immediately closed the large doors of her chamber.

"Bingbing, do you remember the root of the ancient tree from the White Tiger clan we received as an offering from the previous year?" asked the Goddess and her maid nodded. "Hurry up and fetch it for me. I will be needing a lot of your help tonight."

The night came in Heaven's Realm and the lights from Zhao Lu's palace remained lit. Silence embraced the whole palace and only the cries of the little deity echoed from the chamber of her mother.

                                     ༊ *

The moon was replaced by the morning sun, and birds happily chirped outside. Brimming sunlight escaped from the chamber curtains and reached the Goddess' face. There, she smiled at the thing that stole their sleep last night.

"Bingbing," Huang Liu called and the maid woke up and hurriedly sat when the Goddess called her.

"Do you need anything, your Highness?" Bingbing asked and Huang Liu smiled at her. 

The Goddess patted her head, "Thank you for accompanying me."

Bingbing nodded her head happily, "I'm always at your command, Your Highness."

They smiled at each other and Bingbing got up to fetch some water for the Goddess to wash her face. Huang Liu waved her hand in the air and stared at Guan Yin's cradle. "Wǒ ài nǐ, wǒ de bǎobèi er." And the thing in her hand disappeared.

Little Guan Yin cried and her mother immediately came to her side. Huang Liu sang a lullaby that put the crying goddess to sleep.

A little while after, loud thuds of armor were heard in Zhao Lu's Palace. The sound started the sleeping Guan Yin and her mother went to look outside.

Before even opening the door of her chambers, Heavenly Guards carrying thunder chains came to welcome her. 

"Goddess, you are being summoned by the Heavenly God," the captain of the guards bowed in front of her and offered the chain. Huang Liu sarcastically smiled and put her hand in front of her and the guards immediately bind the chains on her wrist.

"Your Highness!" Bingbing shouted and the guards stopped her.

"Let her in." Huang Liu said with calmness and asked Bingbing to get closer. With that, she whispered something and held Bingbing's hand as if telling the maid to calm down. The guard took away the Goddess leaving the young maid and the little Goddess alone in the sleeping chambers.

Huang Liu arrived in the main hall of Heaven's palace, facing Huang Di and the hundreds of Heaven's ministers on both sides.

The news of the Goddess coveting the Forbidden Book of Witches and Guan Yin being born from the power of the Seed of Immortality spread like wildfire in Heaven's Realm.

"Your Highness, Goddess Huang Liu committed a grave sin and she should be severely punished," one of the Gods of the Four Season, Pei Shanchen, the Winter God stepped forward to speak.

"I agree. This matter cannot be concealed anymore. There were too many Gods and Immortals yesterday at the banquet and I am afraid the common people are already aware of it." said Hua Chen, the Spring Goddess.

Huang Di clenched his fist while his hand rested on the armchair. In the middle of the hall, there's Huang Liu on her knees being watched by Heaven's court ministers. The Gods threw disgusted looks at the Goddess and it irritated Huang Di.

"Silence! All of you!" and the entire hall became silent.

"Your Highness, I would l-" before the God of Wilderness even finished his sentence, Huang Di already cut him off and waved his hand to make him stay in his position.

"I will decide on her punishment," said the Heavenly God.

A small laugh was heard from the crowd, it was from Liang Cai, the Night God. "We are afraid that Your Highness will be biased since the matter revolves around your family and your dearest sister."

"Liang Cai, ‎Bì zuǐ." his lover Yiming Ehuang, the Moon Goddess swished her hand and cast a binding spell on Liang Cai's mouth.

Xing Ming walked to the middle, right below Huang Di's throne, and faced the ministers that were having heated arguments, "The Heavenly God's sense of justice is unparalleled, I, Xing Ming, believe that Your Highness will make a wise decision on this matter."

A long silence embraced the hall and no one dared to speak after Xing Ming. Huang Di massaged his temples and once again glanced at his sister.

"Xing Ming," Huang Di called. "Bring the child here," he commanded and the Deity of Stars immediately vanished into thin air.

"Brother, no." Huang Liu shouted and began crying out of fear. "Please brother no. Do not hurt my child. Do not hurt Guan Yin."

"I'm sorry... meimei," Huang Di slowly lifted his hand and a glowing hand appeared. He pushed it through Huang Liu's neck and the hands began to press on the Goddess's throat gripping her neck with his fingers.

"Your Highness," Xing Ming bowed in front of Huang Di with Guan Yin in his arms wrapped in a white and gold cloth, sleeping peacefully.

"Guan Yin..." Huang Liu reached for her child but Huang Di's grip on her neck became tighter as she struggled to break free.

"On this day," Huang Di's voice echoed all over the Jade Palace. "Huang Liu, Goddess of Fertility and Harvest violated the law of heavens and nature and committed a grave crime, bore the child Guan Yin by using the power of the forbidden ancient relic that was sealed by the ancient gods." Tears appeared in Heavenly God's eyes when those words came out of his mouth.

"To appease the majority of the court and to prevent further calamities caused by the child born of the Yin energy, your sentence..." Huang Di's voice broke and he stared into his sister's eyes while still being held by the hands that bind her, "Huang Liu's sentence will be death and the child will also die along with her mother. Guān Yīn yǒngyuǎn bù huì zhuǎnshì.."

The Gods and Goddesses inside the main hall nodded in agreement and seemed to be satisfied by their ruler's decree. Liang Cai smirked and left the place with Yiming Ehuang.

"Huang Liu! Guan Yin!" the loud thud of the palace door startled everyone and there was Xiang Nu holding his Moon Jade Whip.

"Lái rén!" Xing Ming shouted and hundreds of palace guards appeared. Due to the unforeseen event and to protect the others' safety, the Gods and Goddesses were dismissed in the hall and began to disappear one by one.

"Xiang Nu!" Huang Liu called and Xiang Nu used his whip to break the hand that grips the Goddess' neck. The whip caught the Goddess and Huang Liu landed on Xiang Nu's arms.

In order to create an opening for their escape, Xiang Nu destroyed the pillars of the hall and blocked the guards' attack. Some of them were knocked out by the falling debris and some of them tried to land an attack on Xiang Nu but failed due to the Immortal's immense fox power.

"Go!" urged Xiang Nu to Huang Liu but then Xing Ming intercepted on their way.

"Your Highness, My Lord, where do you think you are going?" Xing Ming sprinkled something in the air that seemed like stardust. Xiang Nu's grip on Huang Liu's waist loosened and the Immortal's legs wobbled like jelly.

Huang Di cleared his way toward the couple and caught Huang Liu by her arms, "I'm sorry." he looked at them with sad eyes.

The Heavenly God dragged Huang Liu just right in front of his throne. There, the Goddess had a clear view of her sleeping child in the arms of the Star Deity.

"You must receive your punishment," Huang Di weakly said with an aching heart. His spear appeared in his hand and pointed it at Huang Liu's chest.

"Please Your Highness, please. Let her go. Let me be the one to bear the punishment." Xiang Niu used his own body to shield Huang Liu from the Heavenly God.

"My Lord, I am afraid that it doesn't work that way," Xing Ming calmly said as he gently patted Guan Yin's head. "It is the Goddess' sin and it is her punishment issued by the Heavenly God."

"Please Brother-In-Law, I am willing to trade my life for Huang Liu's," Xiang Nu knelt in front of Huang Di and kowtowed. He kowtowed continuously that his forehead violently hitting the floor.

"Duì bù qǐ," Huang Di's spear is pointing towards Huang Liu. He did not move an inch and didn't even bother looking at Xiang Nu who is closer to him.

"Huang Liu," Xiang Nu stopped on his kowtows and grabbed his whip. There, he used it to take away the Primordial Spear but his whip got melted due to the power of the ancient weapon that the Heavenly God possess.

That leaves him no choice. He took out the dagger in his side belt and his nine tails appeared. The glorious red aura appeared on his back and in a blink of an eye, he sliced one of his tails but he did not even let out a scream of any pain. The tail transformed into a golden ball and threw it behind him.

It was a weapon used to transport someone without leaving any trace of the one that will be riding it. The small ball became a huge one and engulfed Huang Liu.

"Go!" Xiang Nu shouted. By then, he suddenly felt the agonizing pain caused by the loss of his tails.

The Ball floated in the air and closed slowly with Huang Liu inside but then...

Huang Di's spear flew and before it even shut completely, the spear struck Huang Liu's chest. 

"Ever since I ascended as the God of all realms, I vowed to the Ancient God, to our parents, that I will bear all the responsibility to save all the living beings under my rule," Huang Di cried as he look at his meimei's face for one last time. For the last tens of thousands of years, the Heavenly God cried once again, and the last time was when their parents passed away, leaving the realms under his care.

He pierced his spear even more in Huang Liu's chest causing the blood to ooze from her chest to the handle of his spear. "And that includes punishing those who deeply sinned."

Huang Di retrieved his weapon leaving Huang Liu's body in midair. He went closer to catch his little sister's weak body.

"If I did not become greedy. This will not happen to us," told Huang Liu as she raise her hand to hold her dear brother's cheek. "Giving birth to my daughter was also my sin but I never regretted it the moment I felt her energy inside me." 

The Goddess glanced at her baby being held by Xing Ming behind the Heavenly God. "And I am happy to be able to be a mother in this lifetime." she smiled with pain and her body began to fade and disperse.

"Xiang Nu, my beloved, please take care of our child," with those last words, her body vanished and the soul from her spirit core dispersed into the air.

Xing Ming made a pulling-down gesture and a meteor fell from the Heaven's sky indicating a High God's death.

"Xing Ming," Huang Di called as he got up with the help of his spear. "Do what you need to do." the Heavenly God left the palace with only Xing Ming and Xiang Hu along with the guards surrounding them.

The Star Deity placed his hand just above Guan Yin's chest, there, Xiang Hu sensed something wrong.

"No!" Xiang Hu shouted. "No! Don't you dare!" he shouted once again and the fire came out from his body along with his nine majestic tails.

Xing Ming did not move an inch. The Book of Witches appeared in front of him and began absorbing Guan Yin's soul.

"Stop! Don't hurt my daughter, Xing Ming!" Xiang hu shouted and his tail launched an attack toward the Star Deity but the barrier from the book protected him and Guan Yin.

"It is too late now, Xiang Hu. I must do this to prevent the disasters caused by the appearance of your daughter." then the force from the book became stronger. Xiang Hu can see that little Guan Yin is getting pale.

"You're killing my daughter, you must stop what you are doing. She is innocent." Xiang Hu, Guan Yin's father kept on attacking but the barrier reflected the attacks that only caused damage to himself.

"The child is innocent," Xing Ming said with sadness in his eyes, "But her existence is a mistake. You know it too well, My Lord, and I know you are also aware of this book."

Xiang Hu stopped his attacks, he knelt while the trembling feeling slowly crept all over his body.

"No, Huang Liu will not do that." Xiang Hu's chin trembled and looks at Xing Ming with anguished eyes. Tears fell, from one eye and another.

"Let my daughter live, Xing Ming. Kill me instead." the Immortal bargained but the Star Deity shook his head down and continued to extract Guan Yin's life.

"His Highness already made his decision. This child cannot live." Xing Ming felt pity for the Immortal but he cannot disobey Huang Di's decree. "You know what I saw in Guan Yin's future? Destruction." he paused and sighed a deep one. "This child is an embodiment of the Yin energy. Her existence destroys the balance between Heaven and the other realms."

Xiang Nu wanted to protect his daughter, but his body felt numb, and he can't even feel his limbs at all. 

The cutting of a Nine-Tail's Fox is a great matter with regard to the Immortal Fox Clan Royal family members. It is a matter of life and death and not every member of their family is eligible to cut their tail, as it is for those who can only bear the pain of its consequence.

Guan Yin cried and from a short distance, Xiang Nu saw his daughter's hand as if she is reaching for Xing Ming's face. 

"Guan Yin," he said, nearly out of breath and his body cannot endure the pain anymore.

A little firefly came to enter the main hall and it landed on the tip of Xiang Nu's ear.

"Don't worry, our daughter will be safe." a faded voice echoed that only Xiang Nu can hear. He gently closed his eyes and is definitely sure that it was Huang Liu's voice.

"By this time, they should be arriving in the Mortal Realm," Huang Liu's voice echoed once again and he realized that it is from the small firefly on his ear.

"They? Who are they?" the Immortal asked in his lowest voice so that Xing Ming will not hear it.

"I entrusted Guan Yin to Bingbing. The one with Xing Ming is a doll we made with the roots of the ancient Cyprus tree owned by the White Tiger clan." Xiang Nu stared at Xing Ming while he continuously drain the life force of Guan Yin's body with the help of the Book of Witches. He suddenly remembers the old trick that his father taught him when he was a child; the root of the ancient tree from one of the Tiger Clan can create a life that is similar to any living being that you wish to make take its form. To create a human replica, one needs bits of nail cuts, a few strands of hair, and the air from the person's yawn.

"Don't let him suspect you," and the voice along with the firefly disappeared after a breeze entered the hall.

"Stop Xing Ming, please. Let her live..." Xiang Nu once again begged for mercy but as soon as he had enough energy to stand up. He saw his lifeless daughter being covered in the cloth. Thunderclouds gathered in the main hall and the bolts struck Xing Ming along with Guan Yin's dummy. 

The dummy became ashes in an instant and the empty white cloth fell into the Star Deity's arms that earlier held Guan Yin's small body.

                                     ༊ *

"Xiǎo diànxià, hang in there ah?" said Bingbing while she find their way out of Jiǔ jiǔ forest that separates the Immortal realm and the Mortal realm.

Their path was rough and Bingbing did her best to protect Guan Yin. As soon as they were about to reach the mortal realm, the vine of the flesh-eating tree attacked the two of them causing the little deity to fall from Bingbing's arms.

"Xiǎo diànxià!" shouted the maid.

She struggled to break free but the more she tries to cut the vines, the more vines appeared and generates. It began to crawl all over her body and began sucking out her blood and flesh.

"I... owe my life to Goddess Huang Liu... and I think it is time to pay her back." Bingbing gasped for air and tried to free her arms from the vine. After finding out a little space, she performed some chants that followed her hand movements.

"I was from the lowest rank of a fairy from the Flower Kingdom. The moment I was born, I was already destined to have a tough life," she paused to gather more air. "The fairies belittled me because of my low status but then, the Goddess' presence in my life saved me from my misery."

Bingbing smiled genuinely while remembering her days with the Goddess of the Bounty and Harvest. "She protected me from all the insults I had and made me follow her in Heaven." then tears ran down from her eyes as the vines suckers continued to drain her blood.

"Although I am her maid, she treated me more like a younger sister," she let out a painful laugh in between. "And made me eat delicious foods that I never get to taste back when I was in the Flower Kingdom."

Her body glowed in a blue light that headed toward Guan Yin. Before her body was completely sucked out by the vine, Bingbing cast a spell, taught by Huang Liu to remove Guan Yin's immortal and god soul gem.

"I'll be gone in this world, in that way, your existence will be forever hidden from the realms." the maid cried and smiled at the same time. Her body transformed into a blue flower that embraced Guan Yin's inside.

"I'll protect you until my remaining soul runs out." A faded voice echoes, it was from Bingbing and the flower became Guan Yin's shelter.

                                     ༊ *

Heaven Realm became chaos in the following days. The death of Huang Liu and her child, Guan Yin caused an uproar in the higher court. 

Due to this incident, the Heavenly God Huang Di decided to shut himself down for several decades in his palace. 

"Issue my decree. Immortal Fox Clan's Crown Prince and Immortal of Justice Xiang Nu will be stripped of his title including his powers, however, his immortality will remain. As the husband of the late Goddess Huang Liu, he will forever remember the sin of his wife and will spend his remaining days in the Mortal Realm." Huang Di hurriedly spoke that he almost forgot to catch his breath. Xing Ming wrote on the golden scroll alongside the Heavenly God in front of the hundred of Heaven's court ministers.

Also to their fear of the prophecy will come to life, the witches across the lands were eradicated.

Within a span of days, the witch clans came to extinction. Thousands of lives from different tribes were lost, regardless of age and gender. It became one of the biggest massacres to be recorded in history.

After the incident, the ministers of the Heaven's court petitioned to transfer the rule of the Immortals to the Phoenixes instead of the Fox Clan. The Royal family was also demoted to govern the seas of the Mortal Realm instead.

"Xiang Nu," Xing Ming called over in the cold prison cell, and slowly, a dark figure in the distance became clearer. "It is time to receive your punishment."

His posture as a mighty Immortal in the past disappeared, and his messy hair covered the face that once he held with honor. The rattling of the huge chains on his hands and feet echoed in the dark halls of the prison causing screams from the prisons of the neighboring cells. 

Standing on the platform between Heaven and Earth, Xiang Nu remembered the face of his one and only love and the face of his only child being snatched out of her life.

Taking one more step ahead, hundreds of god's thunder will strike his body while on his way to the mortal realm. The thunder will drain the cultivation and the power he gained in his lifetime as an Immortal and an ascended God in Heaven.

"Xiang Nu," a figure appeared in front of him, hazy because of the forming tears in his eyes.

"Qīzi," he cried. The image in front of him was unclear but he was sure that it is Huang Liu's soul fragments visiting him from the afterlife.

The faint image went closer to him and wiped his tears. Soldiers behind him including Xing Ming were left puzzled by the Immortal's reaction.

"Bié kū le," Huang Liu's soul said and the tears disappeared from Xiang Nu's face after she wiped them with her transparent sleeves.

Xiang Nu tried to hold her hands on his face but only felt the coldness. Huang Liu genuinely smiled and a tear from her eye escaped. 

"I'll be praying for you and Guan Yin's safety from the afterlife," she said and her soul began to disperse once again.

"Take me with you," Xiang Nu said. Huang Liu stared at him in silence, making her disapproval clear. With a blink of an eye, she disappeared.

"No!" the God shouted and his misstep caused him to fall from the Heaven and Earth platform. Dark Clouds angrily formed and without any mercy, it strikes the God's body inflicting his flesh with burning wounds.

The witnesses of Xiang Hu's punishment went back to fulfill their individual responsibilities, leaving Xing Ming alone staring at the end of the platform.

"Xiang Ge, I'm sorry," and then Guochao came to pick him up.

                                     ༊ *

Decades passed in a blink of an eye, but every day as a mortal feels like a long-suffering for the old Immortal.

Xiang Nu tried his best to survive in the Mortal World. He was lucky enough that his soul gem is not severely damaged by the God's thunder on the platform.

Agonizing days went by and he used the ample time he have to study the life of mortals from different regions of different ethnicities. He went from place to place when people starts to notice that he is not aging.

With enough acquired wealth from commissions for slaying different kinds of devils, he settled in a faraway place and built a home beyond the mountains that is hidden from the current civilizations.

"I miss you," Xiang Nu stared blankly at the night sky with hundreds of thousands of stars. A bright star from the distance blinked as if it has heard his yearning. He smiled, but a sad and painful one.

From his side, he began to light the incense he brought from the town earlier for his quarterly shopping routine. The flame gloriously lit the place and warmed the surrounding. In front of him was the cenotaph he built for his late wife, Huang Liu.

Xiang Nu threw the joss papers into the fire and it crackled in response.

"Don't worry, my wife. Guan Yin is safe. She'll lead a normal life. The life that you wished her to have." Xiang Nu picked up the incense and bowed at his wife's cenotaph.

[DOP: January 11, 2023]

Vocabulary:

*Duì bù qǐ - I'm sorry -  对不起
*Xiǎo diànxià! - Your Little Highness - 小殿下
*Wǒ qīzi hái hǎo ma?- Is my wife okay? - 我妻子還好嗎？
*Bù kěnéng- Impossible- 不可能
*Shàngshén, xīnkǔle- Goddess, you did well- 上神, 辛苦了
*Nǐ zài gànshénme?- What are you trying to do?- 你在干什么
*Nándào...- Could it be... - 难道
*Wǒ ài nǐ, wǒ de bǎobèi er- I love you, my baby(Treasure)- 我爱你，我的宝贝儿
*Bié kū le-  Don't cry - 别哭了
*Bì zuǐ -  Shut up-  ‎闭嘴
*Guān Yīn yǒngyuǎn bù huì zhuǎnshì  - Guan Yin will never be reincarnated - 觀音永遠不會轉世
*Lái rén- Guards - 來人